This tile panel was designed by William De Morgan, the leading ceramicist of the Arts and Crafts movement. The panel is made up of 42 tiles and depicts a rearing lion painted in bold enamel colours. The lion is highly stylised with a large clawed paws and a sun-ray mane. The design demonstrates De Morgan’s admiration for Iranian and Ottoman Iznik tiles. The panel (and another see C6) was donated by H.C.Mossop, who’s sister Nellie Mossop painted tiles and other ceramics for De Morgan in the early years, when he was working at Orange House in Cheyne Walk. This tile panel was made after that period, at Sands End, Fulham, when De Morgan was in partnership with the architect Halsey Ricardo. An identical panel, with the design reversed and in different colours is also in the Gallery’s collection (see C6).
